13. Never A Good Way To Start A Sentence
13
NEVER A GOOD WAY TO START A SENTENCE
KYLIE
Last night, I’d said a tearful goodbye to Seth and Lincoln, unable to believe that our time together was over. When we’d embarked on this trip, I’d not expected to form such strong ties to anyone new, let alone fall in deep lust with someone. It absolutely is not love. It’s not possible to fall in love with someone I’ve only known for three weeks and now will almost certainly never see again… Right?
“Ready to go?” Tara asks, coming out of the bathroom.
We’d only booked the hotel where the tour ended for one night, moving to a more affordable one where, at long last, we’ll each have our own rooms. It’s a welcome change after three weeks of sharing a room non-stop.
Of course, once again, I find myself perched atop my suitcase, struggling to zip it shut. “Yep, just gotta get this closed.”
“Shame Seth isn’t here to help you yet again,” she replies, crouching down to help me.
Together, we manage to get it closed and I stand up, stretching my back.
“How are you handling it all this morning? You seemed pretty cut up last night.” Tara bends to grab the handle of her own suitcase, and together, we head out into the hall.
“It sucks, but I guess it was never going to go anywhere. How could it, right?” I try to sound unbothered, but inside, my heart feels a little sore.
“Right… Still, though, he was good for you.”
“Yeah,” I reply quietly. “He was.”
We arrive at our new hotel before check-in, so drop our bags off at reception and head back out onto the footpath.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask, and Tara looks down at her handbag, fidgeting a little. I get the distinct impression that she is avoiding looking at me. “Tara… What’s going on?”
“Okay, so don’t get mad.” She finally looks up at me.
“Well, that’s never a good way to start a sentence…”
“Annelisa is here.”
I stare at her, trying to comprehend what she’s saying. “Wait, Annelisa lives in London?”
She nods.
“Why didn’t you tell me this before now?” I try to keep my voice neutral, but I am struggling to keep from getting angry.
“Because I knew you’d get mad at me.”
“I’m only mad that you hid it from me. So you want to go and see her?”
She nods her head slowly, pushing her hair back behind her ear. “She wants me to meet her for lunch and spend the afternoon with her.”
“Well, obviously, I won’t be joining,” I snap, unable to believe she’d kept this from me all this time.
“No, I figured you wouldn’t. I’m sorry. I don’t want to abandon you, but… I need to see my sister.”
I stare at her for a few moments before deflating a little. “I get it… I know you’ve missed her. I just don’t get why you didn’t tell me this was your plan. I could have been working out what I wanted to do on my own.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to put you in a position to have to keep anything from Will.”
“There’s no way I’m telling Will about this. That’s the last thing he needs to know about.”
She looks so sad, and I hate that our older siblings’ drama has put us both in this position. I reach out and give her a hug.
“Go see your sister. I’ll work out a way to keep myself occupied for the day.”
She gives me a watery smile. “Thank you.”
An hour later, I find myself standing in front of the British Museum, unsure if I want to go in or not. I feel like I’ve seen a thousand museums at this point, but I hadn’t done much research on things to do in London, so had just gone to the place closest.
It’s an impressive-looking building, all white with fancy columns out the front. People are flowing in and out, and the area is brimming with tourists.
“Kylie?”
I spin around, and my mouth falls open when I see Seth walking towards me.
“Hey! What are you doing here?” I ask, giving him a hug before stepping back.
“Going to the museum. What are you doing here? Where’s Tara?”
“Um, it’s a long story.” I slide my hands into my back pockets and rock back on my heels.
Seth studies me, his head cocked to the side. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, it’s fine. She went to meet her sister.”
“Oh… The sister that abandoned your brother, I’m assuming?” He rubs the back of his neck.
“Yeah.” I shrug, not really wanting to go into it any further and feeling awkward.
“Wanna come check out the museum with me, then?” he asks, nodding towards the door.
“You don’t mind? We kind of already did the sad goodbye thing last night.”
He smiles and shakes his head. “I’m not going to complain about getting to spend more time with you.” He holds his hand out to me.
“Smooth. Very smooth.” I take his hand and let him lead me inside. “So, where’s Lincoln?”
“He is having a much-needed sleep-in. His words, not mine. Now that we finally have our own rooms again, he’s taking full advantage of not having to be anywhere in particular today.” He stops to buy our admission tickets for the special exhibit before I have a chance to pull out my wallet.
“You didn’t have to do that,” I say, but he waves me off. “Yeah, we moved hotels so that we could afford to have our own rooms, too. Tara loves me, but I think she was starting to get annoyed with my chaos encroaching on her space.”
We spend several hours just wandering through the numerous exhibits, including the one we’d had to pay for - a travelling exhibit from Greece. Once we reach the gift shop, I feel a sense of loss creeping in.
“So, I guess this is goodbye again, huh?” I ask once we’re outside on the steps.
I shove my hands in my back pockets while I try to squash down the sadness at saying goodbye once again. Being around Seth felt effortless, a fresh experience with a guy for me.
“Well… I mean, I don’t have any other plans… We could spend the rest of the day together?” He shifts his weight from one foot to the other, hands in his pockets while he looks down, and I smile at his awkward delivery.
“That sounds great to me.”
“Yeah?” He gives me a shy smile.
I step in closer. “Yeah, Seth. I would happily spend all the time with you I can.”
He grins harder and pulls me towards him before tilting my chin up and kissing me softly. Although we’ve spent several hours together, it’s the first time we’ve kissed, and it feels so right - like it’s as easy as breathing.
After a moment, we step back, conscious of our surroundings. But my insides are screaming for more.
We spend the rest of the afternoon just wandering around London. Neither of us has ever been here before, but after three weeks of constant tourist attractions, it’s nice just to explore with no particular destination in mind.
I messaged Tara earlier to let her know I’d found a way to keep myself occupied, so she didn’t need to rush back, feeling no need to elaborate further. So much of my time with Seth had been shared with others that something about today feels like I need to keep it for myself, at least for now.
Eventually, we find ourselves sitting outside the Tower of London, watching people rush past. We start to play a game of guessing what each person is on their way to do. The tourists are obvious, as they are like us, in awe of the dominating structure that seems so out of place amongst the modern buildings surrounding it. The locals are easy to spot as well, taking no notice of the thousand-year-old tower casting a shadow over the river in the afternoon sun while they walk by, intent on making it to their destinations.
“That guy. He’s on his way to the most important meeting of his life,” Seth says, pointing to a guy in a suit who is rushing past with his phone pressed firmly to his ear while he shouts angrily at whoever is on the other end.
“Oh yes. Clearly, the weight of the entire world is on his shoulders.” I nod along, and Seth laughs. I scan the crowd, looking for another person to play the game on. “Oh, her. She’s smiling so hard. She’s so happy to be here. It’s the first time she’s ever travelled, and everything is shiny and new.” I nod towards a woman who looks to be around my age, staring up at the Tower with her phone in front of her while she snaps photos with a smile that lights up her entire face. “She kind of reminds me of Tara when we got to Paris.”
“Not you?” Seth asks, raising an eyebrow.
“I have loved this trip, but it’s not my first time travelling. I was incredibly lucky to have had the chance to travel growing up. Mostly Canada and the US, and some places in Asia. But this trip was Tara’s first time out of Australia. She didn’t even have a passport until we started planning for the tour. I guess that’s why Annelisa chose to run away to somewhere out of the country.” I can’t hide the bitterness in my voice at the mention of the woman who had been like an older sister to me for years and had broken my brother’s heart.
Seth is quiet for a moment, watching me with a tender look on his face. “Are you going to tell Will you know where she is?”
I shake my head. “No. There’s no good reason to tell him. He’s still barely holding it together. And after watching him push Tara away, I’d hate him to do that to me too if he found out I knew where she was.”
“He’s your brother. I doubt he’d do that.” Seth curls his hand around mine, squeezing lightly.
“Logically, I know that. He’s just hurting so much that I don’t want to add to it.” The closer I get to returning home, the more I’ve been thinking about Will.
It’s hard not to, knowing that I’m in the same city as Annelisa now .
“I should have gone with Tara and demanded answers from her,” I say, continuing my thoughts out loud.
“Well, selfishly, I’m glad you didn’t. Besides, that would have just made things hard for Tara, and I know you wouldn’t want that.” He runs his thumb back and forth over the back of my hand.
We sit in silence for a few minutes, just watching the people walk by while lost in thought.
“So… should we do dinner?” Seth asks, breaking the silence.
“I would love that. I do need to check into my hotel first, though. We dropped off our bags, but our rooms weren’t ready. And I’d really like a shower.” Although an English summer’s day is nothing compared to an Australian one, I’ve still managed to work up a sweat while walking around, and the last thing I feel like doing is going to a restaurant while in the same clothes I’ve been in all day.
“Sure. We can swing by yours first, and I’ll work out a nice place to take us while you shower. Then we can head to mine so I can get washed up, too.” He gets to his feet and reaches his hand out to me.
I squint up at him, the sun glaring in my eyes while I try to search his face. “Wouldn’t it make more sense for us to just meet at the restaurant?”
He shrugs, keeping his hand out. “It probably would. But, I’m selfish, remember. I’m not ready to say goodbye again, even if it is for just a few hours.”
I take his hand, and he pulls me to my feet and into his arms, kissing me before I have a chance to get my bearings. It doesn’t take me long to catch up, though, and I slide my hands up his back beneath his shirt while I open my mouth to him, allowing him to deepen the kiss. He cups my face with his hands, holding my face still, and I let out a quiet moan, eliciting a small laugh from him when he pulls away.
“As much as I’d like to keep doing this, probably not the most appropriate place for this little public make-out session.” He nods towards the family of fellow tourists walking past, the mother shooting us a scandalised look while she bustles her two small people past.
The father grins at Seth while he follows behind, and I step back with a sigh.
“Okay. Let’s go then.”
I lead the way into my hotel room, Seth following behind with my suitcase. The room is modest, but comfortable. The exciting part is that once I get settled, I can make as much mess as I want without having to worry about anyone else.
Once Seth puts my suitcase on the bed, he takes a seat on the small couch while I dig around for some fresh clothes and my toiletries. I feel a little weird and look over at where he’s sprawled out, scrolling through his phone with a thoughtful look on his face while he works out where to go for dinner. It’s the first time we’ve been alone like this, and the lack of chaperones is glaringly obvious when he looks up and finds me watching him. He raises an eyebrow, and I smile before turning back to my belongings. All afternoon, I’ve felt the heat between us growing, and now that there is no one to distract us, my resolve not to sleep with him is crumbling.
I roll my shoulders and avoid looking at him before heading into the bathroom. Stepping under the slow trickle of water isn’t quite the relief that I’d hoped it would be. One thing I have not enjoyed on this trip is the crappy water pressure in most of the hotels we’ve stayed in, and disappointingly, this one appears to be one of the worst.
After the quickest shower I’ve ever had, I climb out and realise I stupidly didn’t bring a towel in with me.
“Um, Seth. Are there towels out there?” I call through the door, water dripping from my body onto the floor.
“Yeah, hold on.” I hear him move around the room before he knocks on the door.
I open the door a little and stick my head around to give him a kiss while taking the towel off him.
“Trying very hard not to think about the fact that you are not wearing any clothes while you do that.” He gives me a pointed look, and I can’t help but respond with a flirty smile.
“Maybe I left the towel on purpose,” I reply, and I see him swallow hard just as I close the door.
After I finish dressing and put on some make up, I open the door to find he has returned to his seat, still scrolling through his phone. He looks up and runs his eyes over me, the heat behind his gaze undeniable as he takes in the blue summer dress that brushes my mid-thighs. It’s one he’s seen before, and I know for a fact that he’d liked it, as he’d had trouble keeping his hands off me the last time I wore it in Prague.
I move towards him, and he places the phone down on the side table as he sits forward, resting his elbows on his knees while watching me. I stop in front of him and run my fingers through his hair while he looks up at me, a wordless question in his eyes. Pushing him back gently, I drop one knee down beside him and straddle his lap.
“Hi,” I say quietly while he inhales deeply, his eyes searching my face.
He clears his throat, shifting a little under me while placing his hands on my hips. “Hi.”
“Did you find a restaurant yet?” I ask before leaning down to kiss his neck, and he groans a little.
“Possibly. But I’m slightly distracted now.”
“What’s distracting you?” I capture his earlobe between my teeth, and his grip on my hips tightens.
“Oh, I don’t know… Maybe it’s the incredibly beautiful woman in my lap…”
“That does sound distracting. ”
Moving fast, he reaches up and clasps the back of my head, pulling me down so that he can kiss me, and I moan when his tongue brushes against mine. My body takes over, and I grind down a little, the fly of his jeans brushing right against the sensitive spot at the apex of my thighs, and we both gasp together.
“Fuck,” he whispers in my ear while I swirl my hips again, applying more pressure. “Keep doing that, and this is going to lead to something more.”
“Maybe that’s what I want,” I reply, and he pulls back, looking me in the eye.
He strokes my cheek with his thumb while he considers my words.
“Maybe I want it too… But I don’t want to rush anything. So let’s stick with the original plan and see where the night takes us.”
I search his face, thrown by the fact that he’s put on the brakes when I feel his semi pressed against my inner thigh.
After a moment, I nod and get to my feet, realising there really is no glamorous way to get up from straddling someone. He stays put for a moment, and I’m pleased to see he is just as affected by what just happened as I am.
He eventually gets to his feet and pulls me in again to kiss me tenderly before grabbing my handbag and towing me out the door like he needs to get as far away as possible from this room to avoid temptation.